Empowerly

Student profile

Describe an example of your leadership experience in which you have positively influenced others, helped resolve disputes or contributed to group efforts over time. (350 Max)  
    

Halfway through high school, I began reflecting on my time as a freshman. When I looked back, I realized how difficult it was for me to find my place in the new environment. Whether I was trying to navigate through the hallways to locate the nearest bathroom or deciding which clubs to join from the vast list of activities, I felt lost. With so many opportunities, I inadvertently overloaded myself and had a fair share of stressful moments balancing it all. Because of my less than ideal experience, I wanted to find a way to guide incoming freshmen through the tricky first weeks.

I discovered an organization called Link Crew. We received training on how to be a good mentor in the hopes of guiding the freshmen to make the most out of their high school experience. On orientation day, we guided them around the school and told them about where they could find whatever they might need. As one of the leaders, I had the responsibility to help any freshman who looked lost. During the first few days, I met a freshman boy from Texas. His family just moved to California. In addition to adapting to the new environment, he had trouble making friends. I noticed him eating lunch alone one day, so I invited him to sit with me and my friends. Slowly, I saw him come out of his shell and be a more confident and social person. 

Today, whenever I see him in the hallways, I am amazed at how much he grew. I am happy to say that I helped him begin his high school journey, but I have also made a good friend in the process. Having the opportunity as a Link Crew leader allowed me to both foster and receive a greater sense of belonging in our school community. Watching him grow as a person gave me self-confidence because I played a special part in someone else's experience. Link Crew has taught me not only how to be a good mentor, but the value of connecting with people.

Every person has a creative side, and it can be expressed in many ways: problem-solving, original and innovative thinking, and artistically, to name a few. Describe how you express your creative side. (350 Max) 
    

Looking down at my neighborhood through the lens of a drone, I enjoy the thrill of seeing my surroundings from a completely different perspective. Sure, there are slides and monkey bars in the local park. However, my playground is up in the sky. From shooting aerial photography to performing complicated maneuvers around the play structures, I can explore the world around me.

There are times when I accidentally fly my drone into a wall and it comes crashing to the ground. Most of the times, the culprit is a broken propeller. Frequently replacing propellers can get expensive, so I had to come up with a different way. I first tried to craft propellers out of acrylic. However, I realized it was difficult to manipulate the hard plastic to achieve the correct angle for the drone to take off. I researched further to find the most efficient way to make a propeller to suit my needs and found the perfect solution: 3D printing.

To create the propeller, I used a computer-aided design program called [name]. I could carefully dimension the propeller to have the perfect aerodynamic shape to produce lift for the drone. When I finished my designs, I went to a friend’s house and used his 3D printer to print the propellers I created. After testing a few trial prints of my design, I realized that there were many possibilities of different shapes and sizes. In the following weeks, I spent hours on [name] and proceeded to edit, print, and test each of my iterations so that my drone achieved the best performance boost.

Limited only by my imagination, I created and tested dozens of propellers whilst learning more about the way a drone flies. The rapid prototyping capabilities of 3D printing perfectly paired with my ever-evolving ideas. I have used the technology to make everyday objects such as keychains, pencil holders, and drawer organizers. My creativity enhanced my drone flying experience, but it has more importantly, opened me up to a new world of technology, making the world my playground.

Describe how you have taken advantage of a significant educational opportunity or worked to overcome an educational barrier you have faced. (350 Max) 

It was the first time I had gone to any store by myself and I did not know what to expect. I just moved to the U.S. from India and barely spoke English. How would I ask someone for help, or what if someone asks me for help? So many thoughts raced through my head. In fear of embarrassment, I quickly bought the groceries and left. “That went pretty smoothly,” I thought to myself. But then it hit me: I cannot continue to divert all possibilities of conversation if I wanted to improve my English.

In six months, I had to master reading comprehension, writing, listening, and speaking all in time for school. Becoming fluent in English required hard work and determination; no matter how busy I was, I made sure to spend my nights studying. More important than the technicalities of English reading and writing was the ability to converse. After two weeks of memorizing vocabulary and sentence structure, I had a newfound eagerness to exchange words with anyone I encountered. I returned to Walmart, but this time with a resolve. I saw a store clerk and asked him, "Do you think I should get a Dell or a Lenovo laptop?" I repeated myself, this time pointing to the laptops on the shelf. Still, he looked puzzled and I was growing a bit frustrated. Finally, I said it again, but with my best American accent. He responded, “The Lenovo would be good for school work.”

I quickly realized my accent required work. The most effective way I knew to improve my accent was to listen to and talk with other people. I always went to my local park to play basketball with the neighborhood kids. Learning a new language brought me new and genuine friendships; I learned the value of diversity and inclusion. Now, I seek out conversations and am excited by the possibilities that every discussion holds. When overcoming the challenges of learning English and connecting with new people, I was resilient and true to myself. I am excited to converse and create new friendships.

Think about an academic subject that inspires you. Describe how you have furthered this interest inside and/or outside of the classroom. (350 Max) 

When I was younger, I constantly found myself losing track of time driving my red remote control car. One day, despite pushing the joystick in all directions, I could not get the car to budge. I dismantled the car to find the source of the problem; a few wires were not connected to the circuit. I tinkered with the wires until the car worked. I wondered how all of the car’s components worked in harmony, following every command I gave it. Since then, I questioned how different machines accomplished their functions. 

Years later, my curiosity peaked when I heard that electric cars were becoming a reality. The idea of an amplified version of my red car was not only magical, but also inspiring because of the implications this held for sustainable energy. Growing up in India, where power outages were frequent due to a mismatch between the increasing population and amount of energy resources, I was no stranger to the importance of cleaner energy. I was ecstatic to discover that as a mechanical engineer, I could combine my curiosity for mechanisms with my passion for working towards a sustainable future.

I explored my interest in mechanical engineeringㄧtransforming it into a passion. By taking AP Physics, I learned how to apply the laws of physics into models, from a catapult that launched a hacky sack into the air to a rat-trap powered car that traveled a certain distance. However, making these creations did come with their challenges. My initial catapult prototype, for example, was unable to hit the target due to the lack of dimensioning in my design. I learned the importance of creativity paired with precision and made dimensioned blueprints of my contraptions from then on. I applied my understanding of key physics concepts to real-life applications, and I learned to tackle unexpected problems in systematic, yet imaginative ways. 

A natural passion and curiosity in mechanics and a motivation to better the world inspire me to become an engineer. Majoring in mechanical engineering will be my next step to innovate machines that improve the standard of living around the world.